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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25492228">Late Nights</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/loverjoy/pseuds/loverjoy'>loverjoy</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Homestuck</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Nightmares, Panic Attacks</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-07-24</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-07-24</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-05 03:20:52</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>3,158</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25492228</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/loverjoy/pseuds/loverjoy</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Dave's nightmares get the best of him sometimes, but at least this time around there's someone there to comfort him.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Dave Strider/Karkat Vantas</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>79</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Late Nights</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Hi! This is a work I did for a davekat fanzine called The Crabapple Zine! Link right here: <a href="https://crabapple-zine.itch.io/crabapple-zine">

Please go check it out, it's full of talented artists and writers and cosplayers!!</a></p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Nightmares were something he used to have often, but since he’s been here on the meteor they’ve been pretty void. At least, until tonight apparently. He’d almost forgotten how intense they were until he shot awake with a racing heart and burning lungs, forehead slick with sweat.</p><p>He looked around, searching for something, anything. But he found nothing.</p><p>It was dark and he was alone.</p><p>He tried taking some deep breaths, trying to calm himself. His mouth felt dry and he could feel himself trembling. God, he hasn’t felt this awful since he was back home. He put a hand to his chest, palm resting over his heart; it was beating hard and fast. He clenched his fist, fingers gripping his shirt, clinging to it as a way to ground him. </p><p>He needed to get up, he couldn’t stand being in here in the dark where the shadows reminded him of figures in his dreams. He pushed the blankets off of him, feet hitting the floor as he stood. He trembled and felt light headed, but he stayed upright; a good sign.</p><p>He stepped towards the door that was open a crack, pushing it all the way open before he stepped out into the well lit hallway. This damn place was full of winding hallways that it took him forever to remember, but at least now he knew how to get to the kitchen. Or, at least the place they all considered the kitchen. The food was there, anyway.</p><p>He walked for what felt like hours, but was really only a few minutes, and soon he was at the kitchen. He froze in the doorway though, he didn’t step a foot in; he realized he wasn’t alone in here.</p><p>Across the room, perched on the counter, was Karkat. He was up late a lot of the time, he claimed he had trouble sleeping, always has. Hiding and living in fear from the drones did that to a guy. It was obvious he was tired though, sleepy circles under his eyes as he read a book that he was holding in a hand. In his other hand was a drink, but Dave couldn’t tell what it was from here.</p><p>Karkat noticed him first. Despite being tired, he was still a troll and his instincts were better than Dave’s. He looked at the other boy with a curious gaze, lowering his book a bit as he stared at Dave who remained frozen in the doorway.</p><p>“Dave? What are you doing up?” His raspy voice pulled Dave out of his thoughts, and somehow even calmed him a little.</p><p>“O-oh, I uh…” He swallowed, hoping it would sooth his dry and somewhat sore throat, “Thirsty, came to get something.”</p><p>“Oh,” Karkat said, relaxing his shoulders, “We’ve got coffee? But that’s probably not what you need if you’re planning on heading back to bed after this.”</p><p>Dave quirked an eyebrow, relaxing a tad now that his mind was distracted by something else, “You’re drinking coffee?”</p><p>Karkat shrugged, “I’m gunna be up all night anyway.”</p><p>“Dude, you should at least try and get some sleep sometimes,” Dave said, finally stepping into the kitchen, slowly approaching the troll perched on the counter.</p><p>“Eh, I’ll be okay. I’ll take a nap or something later,” Karkat said, setting his cup down along with his book.</p><p>Dave debated with himself for a moment. To have coffee or to not have coffee, that was the question. Coffee wasn’t something he needed in the middle of the night (day?) but really, would he be going back to sleep after the state that nightmare put him in? He really didn’t feel like going back to dreamland right now.</p><p>“I’ll have a cup,” Dave said, which seemed to surprise Karkat, but the troll turned and grabbed him a clean cup anyway and passed it to him, “Thanks.”</p><p>Dave grabbed the pot and poured a full cup, taking a sip. It tasted really damn good, but he was thirsty and everything tasted better when you were parched. Karkat watched him as the boy in sunglasses leaned back against the opposite counter, and he was able to see he was tense.</p><p>“Are you feeling okay? You seem a little out of it,” Karkat questioned, and Dave’s shoulders tensed again.</p><p>“I-I’m fine,” He stammered, which was not helping. He cleared his throat and avoided Karkat’s eyes as he tried to rebound, “I just woke up Kar, you can’t expect me to be one-hundred percent the dope motherfucker I am all the time, even though I am one-hundred percent the dope motherfucker I am all the time right now I’m just like, one-hundred percent the dope motherfucker I am all the time but tired.”</p><p>Karkat simply rolled his eyes at that, “Well, excuse me for asking.”</p><p>That was a close one. Dave released a tired sigh and looked down at his coffee, seeing a half ass reflection of himself in it. Man, he looked like shit. No wonder Karkat thought something was wrong. He let his finger glide around the rim of his cup, other hand gripping it maybe a little too tightly; he was still trembling.</p><p>“Hey Kar? Why can’t you sleep at night?” His voice was low and even, and though Dave’s voice was usually pretty deadpan, something was different this time. </p><p>He sounded… sad?</p><p>Karkat was surprised by the question and more so Dave’s way of asking it; he raised an eyebrow in curiosity, “What?”</p><p>“I don’t know, just trying to make conversation I guess…” Dave said with a shrug, “We’re both up so why not, you know?”</p><p>Karkat was silent for a moment, watching Dave closely, but he answered a moment later, “I told you: for pretty much my entire life, I’ve been hiding from the drones and being in the dark by myself like that just reminds me of those days.”</p><p>Dave was quiet as he let that process through his mind, then he asked, “So… Do you ever have dreams about those times? Is that maybe why you don’t want to go to sleep?”</p><p>And then Karkat was quiet again, and this time it was quiet for a while. He knew something was up, but now it was even more obvious. Dave’s fingers were twitching around his cup, eyebrows furrowed slightly in distress, and that was a look he never saw on Dave’s face.</p><p>He was never up this late either, and now here he was asking questions about Karkat’s sleeping habits, as if he were trying to… relate to somebody…</p><p>“Dave,” Karkat spoke after a long moment of silence that made Dave’s fidgeting worse than it had been before, “Are you okay?”</p><p>For some reason, that question hit him differently. It almost… hurt to hear? He couldn’t understand why, but maybe it was because people had never really asked him how he felt before. At least, not until recently, and he’d never really heard it spoken before. So yeah, it pulled on his heartstrings a little.</p><p>“Dave?” Karkat said his name again when he stayed silent, and Dave flinched and turned his head to look at Karkat. He was looking at him with concern, it was the softest look he’d seen Karkat give him.</p><p>It also hurt. It hurt so bad.</p><p>“I-I--” He didn’t really know what to say, he didn’t even know how to control how he felt at this moment. He felt… vulnerable, and he didn’t like feeling vulnerable, “I, uh--”</p><p>He couldn’t even form sentences, which was a red flag for Karkat. Yeah, Dave’s rambling usually didn’t make much sense anyway, but Dave not being able to speak at all? That was concerning. Karkat leaned forward, trying to get a closer look and he began to speak again, “Dave, is there something you want to tell me?”</p><p>Silence, but then a nod.</p><p>Well, that’s progress.</p><p>“I think I know what it is,” Karkat said, and Dave was quiet, so Karkat just said it, “You had a bad dream, right?”</p><p>Again, silence, but the way Dave’s attitude changed confirmed his answer. Karkat slumped his shoulders, eyes flicking to see Dave’s hands trembling pretty intensely around his cup, “Dave…”</p><p>Suddenly, the white-haired boy turned and placed his cup down before he reached a hand up and pushed it through his hair. He was beginning to panic, “I-I just--”</p><p>“You don’t have to tell me about it if you don’t want to,” Karkat said without thinking as Dave began to wring his hands.</p><p>“N-no, I…” Dave took a deep breath but exhaled it quickly, signaling his panic was getting worse, “I want to.”</p><p>Karkat watched his fingers twitch against each other, the almost terrified look on his face making his concern deeper, “Dave--”</p><p>“I-I’m sorry, this isn’t like me,” Dave said, voice strained; it was showing one hundred times more emotion than it ever did, “Sorry, I just…”</p><p>He couldn’t gather his thoughts, everything hurt too bad; Karkat frowned, “Dave…”</p><p>It was only now that Karkat really took in the sight before him. Dave looked pale, a sheen on his forehead from where he had been sweating. His fingers were twitching, hands twisting as he sort of rocked back and forth in place. His breathing was also elevated, and Karkat just knew his heart was racing.</p><p>“Dave,” Karkat suddenly stuck out one hand, wanting to grab Dave but knowing that probably wasn’t such a good idea right now, so instead this is what he did, “Grab my hand.”</p><p>“H-huh?” Dave mumbled, turning his head to look at the outstretched hand before him. It certainly looked tempting, but when he saw it suddenly in front of his face he couldn’t help but see a flash in his mind of a time when a hand that close to his face meant he was about to get hurt.</p><p>But this time was different. Dave shakily lifted one of his hands, letting his fingers brush against Karkat’s palm and when Karkat didn’t pull away Dave let himself wrap his fingers around the other boy’s hand. Karkat squeezed his hand with his own, and it was gentle and soft and soothing. Karkat wasn’t going to hurt him.</p><p>Dave couldn’t help it and he hated it so much, but he let out a choked sob as he stared at Karkat’s hand holding onto his so gently. </p><p>“Oh my God, Dave…” Karkat scooted forward a bit, pulling Dave a little closer so he wasn’t so alone.</p><p>“I’m sorry…” Dave said quietly, voice barely even audible.</p><p>“What are you saying sorry for?” Karkat asked, voice softer than usual as he tried to calm down the other.</p><p>Dave sniffled and shrugged his shoulders, stumbling over his words as he tried to explain, “I-I shouldn’t be telling you any of this. I can’t be telling you how I feel, I-- I--”</p><p>He just bowed his head after that, not wanting to look at Karkat while he was like this. Karkat was only quiet for a moment, only because he was surprised, “And why not?”</p><p>“B-because…” He… didn’t really know actually. He just knows what he was always told, “Because it’s weak? I-I have to be strong or we can’t win this game. I have to be strong so I can protect everyone, so I can protect you! I--”</p><p>“Hey,” Karkat squeezed his hand, which halted Dave’s words, “You’re not weak for talking about this sort of stuff. Actually, I think it takes more strength to talk about how you feel than to ignore how you feel.”</p><p>“R-really?” Dave choked out, having a bit of a hard time breathing, “My-my bro always told me it-it was weak.”</p><p>“Okay, but Dave, who do you trust more here? Your bro, or me?” Karkat asked him, and that sort of threw Dave for a loop.</p><p>He’d… never really thought about anything like this before. He’s not been around his brother in three years, he’s not even alive anymore. Why is he still afraid of him? Maybe because for thirteen years he was treated more like a toy than a person with feelings. Maybe because when he closes his eyes he can still see and hear and feel everything that ever happened. </p><p>But then again, it hasn’t hurt as bad since he’s been here. Not since he met his sister and all these trolls and Karkat.</p><p>“Karkat, I--” He choked again, cutting himself off as he shuffled forward a bit and reached out his other hand, grabbing for Karkat.</p><p>The dark-haired boy was surprised by this development, but he wasn’t going to deny what Dave was asking for right now. Hell, he almost wonders if Dave ever even had one of these. He grabbed Dave’s shirt and pulled him closer, and Dave was quick to discard his glasses and latch onto him. </p><p>His hands found Karkat’s shirt, clinging to him and pulling him closer as he buried his face against his chest and cried. Karkat was surprised by how quickly Dave melted against him, and it made him frown. He put a hand on the back of Dave’s head, fingers threading through his hair as his other arm just grabbed onto his shirt and supported him.</p><p>Dave never thought he’d be here, scared to death of his dreams and standing between Karkat Vantas’ legs, crying against his chest. But here he was, and he didn’t even feel bad in admitting it felt good. </p><p>Was this what he’d been missing from his life?</p><p>“Karkat, I’m so sorry… I’m sorry…” Dave cried, wetting the other boy’s shirt with his tears.</p><p>Karkat just rested his chin on top of Dave’s head and tightened his hold on him, hoping it made him feel safer, “It’s okay, Dave. Nothing to be sorry for.”</p><p>Dave continued to sob, clinging to Karkat tightly, like if he let go the other boy would just disappear. He didn’t want him to disappear. He didn’t even think he’d ever have something like this, a relationship like this. To be honest, he wasn’t even sure what their relationship even was, but he knew it was something good.</p><p>He didn’t want to lose this.</p><p>“Please, don’t go… Don’t go…” He pleaded, turning his head so the side of his face rested against Karkat’s chest, making it easier to breathe now.</p><p>Karkat actually felt his own eyes burn at that, and suddenly he was biting his lip to keep those tears from rolling down his cheeks. Instead he just hugged Dave tighter, hoping it reassured him, “I’m not, Dave. I’m not.”</p><p>Dave just continued to cry, and he did for a while, at least until he tired himself out and resorted to sniffling. Karkat didn’t let him go, and he wouldn’t until Dave was ready. He just gently pushed his claws against Dave’s scalp, which seemed to sooth him well.</p><p>Moments passed and eventually the room was silent save for an occasional sniffle and the sound of Karkat’s heartbeat where Dave had his ear pressed against his chest. It was calming to listen to.</p><p>Karkat turned his head down, trying to look at Dave. He was curious and concerned, so he had to ask, “Dave? Are you okay?”</p><p>The other boy moved around a bit under his arm, seeming to feel a bit embarrassed about what just happened, but he didn’t try pulling away. Not yet, “Yeah.”</p><p>It was a short answer, and it didn’t make Karkat feel too warm and fuzzy, “Are you sure?”</p><p>It was silent, and Dave finally released a tension filled sigh. He loosened his grasp on Karkat’s shirt before he started to back up, but just a little bit. His hands slid back a bit, instead clinging to the front of Karkat’s shirt now as he lifted his head to look at the boy who was still perched on the counter.</p><p>“I’m…” He wanted to apologize again, but seeing the concerned look on Karkat’s face made him stop there. Karkat didn’t need an apology, all he cared about was making sure Dave was actually okay. </p><p>Dave couldn’t help it; he smiled.</p><p>“I’m okay,” He said, his smile tired and kind of sad, but it was obvious there was some gratitude and legitimate happiness behind it, “Thank you.”</p><p>Karkat was taken aback for a moment because, wow, Dave’s eyes are really pretty. He rarely ever saw them, and when he did it was never for long. Seeing Dave’s smile paired with his bright eyes was enough to pull Karkat’s lips into a small smile as well.</p><p>“No need,” He said in reply, still holding onto Dave’s shirt too.</p><p>It was silent for a moment then, at least until Dave seemed to feel uncomfortable staring into Karkat’s eyes for a prolonged period of time. So, he averted his eyes and tried to change the subject, “So, um…”</p><p>Karkat listened and furrowed his eyebrows curiously as Dave continued to stammer, watching him lift a hand to scratch the back of his head nervously, “Hm?”</p><p>“I-I was just like, wondering, if maybe uh… You’d like to uh… Maybe…” <em> Okay Dave, come on, this isn’t even a hard question to ask, </em> “Do you wanna watch a movie or something?”</p><p>Karkat opened his mouth to speak, but of course, Dave began to ramble, “I-I mean, it’s okay if you don’t want to! I understand if you’ve had too much unwarranted Dave time tonight! I get it, don’t worry! Sometimes I have too much Dave time too! Sometimes I just wish I could shut the hell up, you know? Kinda like right now! Haha! Ha! Ha…”</p><p>“Oh my God, stop,” Karkat said, before he surprised Dave with what he said next, “There’s never too much Dave time, and it’s never unwarranted.”</p><p>That… actually made Dave’s face burn. Karkat wasn’t slow to notice this, seeing the red hue brighten his face. The sight of it made his face turn red as well, and he turned his head away and cleared his throat, “Uh, anyway. We should uh…”</p><p>“Yeah,” Dave said, finally moving back from Karkat and letting him go, “Let’s go.”</p><p>Karkat nodded and hopped off the counter, leaving his coffee to get cold as he led Dave out of the kitchen and into the “lounge room.” He quickly picked out a DVD and showed it to Dave, asking if it was okay to watch. Dave didn’t seem to mind, never really did. So, Karkat popped it into the DVD player and pressed PLAY before he turned and found the couch, flopping down onto his back, upper body halfway resting on the arm.</p><p>He looked up at Dave, gesturing for him to sit with him, “Well? Are you gunna sit down or what?”</p><p>Dave smirked as he moved forward towards the other, “This is hella gay, bro.”</p><p>Karkat simply rolled his eyes, “Whatever.”</p><p>Dave sat on the couch before he crawled over to Karkat, practically lying on top of him and letting his head rest on his chest; he could listen to his heartbeat this way.</p><p>He smiled, “Yeah, whatever.”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Hope you guys liked this!! Again, here's the link to the Crabapple Zine: <a href="https://crabapple-zine.itch.io/crabapple-zine">

Just please, check it out!! It's so good guys!!

And please leave a comment on this piece and let me know what you think!! Thanks for reading!! &lt;3</a></p></blockquote></div></div>
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